Europe a 'few years' away from overcoming energy deficit according to Alfred Stern

 

Europe is "a few years" away from recovering from its current energy deficit caused by the disruption in Russian gas supplies, according to Alfred Stern, CEO of Austrian energy group OMV. The continent is in the midst of its worst energy crisis. after Russia, the region's largest supplier of natural gas, cut exports in response to EU sanctions over its military offensive in Ukraine. However, the crisis has been smoldering for several years. under pressure from investors who have adopted more renewable-friendly strategies in recent years. "It takes significant investment to fix this, and our industry typically has very long investment cycles," he said.

Investments in oil exploration and production must increase and remain near pre-coronavirus $525 billion through 2030 to ensure market balance, according to the International Energy Forum. Exploration and production investments in 2021 had fallen to US$341 billion for the second year in a row: approximately 25% below 2019 levels.